Paes, Bhupathi win Toronto Masters doubles

Updated: 25 February 2007 09:08 IST

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi won the doubles title at the $2.5 million ATP Tennis Masters Series in Toronto.

Written by NDTVSports

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New Delhi:

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi marked their reunion after a gap of more than two years by winning the doubles title at the $2.5 million ATP Tennis Masters Series in Toronto, Canada, last night.
Paes and Bhupathi, world number one pair at their peak in 1999 when they won the French Open and Wimbledon titles, defeated Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden and Belarussian Max Mirnyi 6-4 6-2 in the final.
After going down a break in the second game, the 'Indian Express' bounced back with a double break in the third and seventh games to take the first set. The pair gained a break in the very first game of the second set before extending the lead to 5-2 with another break in the seventh to wrap up the title.
It was the 23rd title for Paes and Bhupathi together and their fifth Masters title. Interestingly, their first title came at the same venue seven years ago.
Individually, it was Bhupathi's 36th career title and Paes' 30th. Bhupathi was also the defending champion, having won last year with Mirnyi.
The duo ran into fine form in the tournament that saw them gobble up three top-10 pairs aÂ" including Mark Knowles of Bahamas and Canadian Daniel Nestor aÂ" on their way to the title and the win should make them a strong contender for the Olympics gold at Athens in a fortnight's time.
The Toronto win gives the duo 500 ATP points each and will push Paes up to Number 20 on the Doubles Entry ranking. Bhupathi's ranking will stay at his current Number 5. (PTI)